Lucas Pérez
| cityofbirth = A Coruña | countryofbirth = Spain | dateofdeath = | cityofdeath = | countryofdeath = | height = | position = Forward | currentclub = Alavés | clubnumber = 7 | youthyears = | youthclubs = Alavés Montañeros Órdenes | years = 2007–2009 2009–2011 2010–2011 2011–2013 2013 2013–2015 2014–2015 2015–2016 2016–2018 2017–2018 2018–2019 2019– | clubs = Atlético Madrid C Rayo Vallecano B Rayo Vallecano Karpaty Lviv → Dynamo Kyiv (loan) PAOK → Deportivo La Coruña (loan) Deportivo La Coruña Arsenal → Deportivo La Coruña (loan) West Ham United Alavés | caps(goals) = 55 (18) 44 (25) 7 (1) 51 (14) 0 (0) 32 (9) 21 (6) 37 (18) 11 (1) 35 (8) 15 (3) 17 (8) | nationalyears = | nationalteam = | nationalcaps(goals) = | manageryears = | managerclubs = }} Lucas Pérez Martínez (born 10 September 1988), known simply as Lucas, is a Spanish professional footballer who plays for English club West Ham United as a forward. Club career Atlético / Rayo Lucas was born in A Coruña, Galicia. After appearing for three different clubs as a youth he moved to Madrid and joined Atlético Madrid's C-team, playing two seasons in Tercera División. In the 2009 summer he signed with Rayo Vallecano, helping the reserves promote from the same level in his first year. In the 2010–11 season, Lucas contributed with five games and one goal (in a 3–0 home win against Real Valladolid on 6 November 2010) as Rayo returned to La Liga after eight years. He continued to be mainly registered with the B's, however. Karpaty Lviv On 17 January 2011, free agent Lucas signed a three-year contract with Ukrainian Premier League team FC Karpaty Lviv. He scored his first goal for the club on 17 July, against FC Chornomorets Odesa in a 1–1 draw. In January 2013, Lucas joined fellow league club FC Dynamo Kyiv on loan, and later labelled his experience as "a nightmare". PAOK On 5 July 2013, Lucas signed on a fee of €700,000 a three-year contract with Superleague Greece team PAOK FC. He scored his first goal for the club on 17 August, contributing to a 3–0 home success over Skoda Xanthi FC, and on 24 November he equalised in a 3–1 win over Aris F.C. in the Derby of Northern Greece; he also helped to a runner-up run in the national cup, losing the decisive match to Panathinaikos FC. On 18 July 2014 Lucas returned to Spain, joining newly promoted side Deportivo de La Coruña in a one-year loan deal, with a buyout clause. He scored in his first official appearance for Dépor, having started in a 3–0 home win against Valencia CF on 19 October which also marked his La Liga debut; the following matchday he was replaced in the 15th minute of a 0–0 away draw against RCD Espanyol, due to a knee injury. Lucas only returned to action in January of the following year, appearing 12 minutes in a 0–4 home loss against FC Barcelona. On 23 May, against the same opponent at the Camp Nou, he helped his team come from behind by scoring in the 67th minute of a 2–2 draw in the last round that prevented relegation. On 23 July 2015, in his first competitive match upon his return to PAOK, against NK Lokomotiva for the second preliminary round of the UEFA Europa League, Lucas scored the opener after Róbert Mak's shot was saved, in an eventual 6–0 home success. One week later, against FC Spartak Trnava for the same competition, he netted the game's only goal in the first leg. Deportivo On 12 August 2015, Lucas signed a permanent four-year deal with Deportivo. On 12 December, he took his season tally to 11 goals in only 15 games, helping to a 2–2 draw at Barcelona. Arsenal On 27 August 2016, Arsène Wenger said that Pérez had completed a medical examination and will join Arsenal after the paperwork is done. A few days later, on 30 August 2016, the transfer was confirmed by the club, for a reported fee of £17.1 million. Pérez made his competitive debut for Arsenal in the team's 2–1 league win at home over Southampton, which coincided with both his birthday and that of French teammate Laurent Koscielny, whom Pérez assisted for Arsenal's equliser. On 31 August 2017, Pérez rejoined Deportivo on a season-long loan deal. West Ham United On 9 August 2018, Pérez joined West Ham United on a three year deal for a reported fee of £4m. He made his league debut for his new club nine days later, coming on as a 77th-minute substitute for Mark Noble in a 1–2 home loss to Bournemouth. On 4 December 2018, Pérez scored his first league goals for 700 days: coming on for Marko Arnautović, he scored twice in a 3–1 home win against Cardiff City. Alavés In May 2019, West Ham accepted an offer from Deportivo Alavés for Peréz for a fee of €2.5m subject to a medical. He officially signed for the club on 3 June, making his league debut on 18 August by playing the last minutes of the 1–0 home victory over Levante UD. He scored his first goal on 29 September, the first in a 2–0 win against RCD Mallorca also at Mendizorrotza Stadium. Honours PAOK *Greek Football Cup runner-up: 2013–14 Arsenal *FA Cup: 2016–17 External links *Stats at Resultados Fútbol Category:1988 births Category:Living people Category:Players Category:Spanish players Category:Wingers Category:Forwards Category:Rayo Vallecano players Category:Deportivo de La Coruña players Category:FC Karpaty Lviv players Category:FC Dynamo Kyiv players Category:PAOK FC players Category:Arsenal F.C. players Category:West Ham United F.C. players Category:Deportivo Alavés players Category:La Liga players Category:Segunda División players Category:Segunda División B players Category:Tercera División players Category:Ukrainian Premier League players Category:Superleague Greece players Category:Premier League players